


Dirty Computer

by KatrinaKenyon



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Clones, F/F, Rip is kind of dick in this one sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-05
Updated: 2019-02-09
Packaged: 2019-06-05 13:51:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 14,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15172073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatrinaKenyon/pseuds/KatrinaKenyon
Summary: Sara finds out that clones are a thing and apparently everyone at the Time Bureau knows about the AVA that works for them.Or the one where Sara Lance falls for a clone.





	1. Part 1: If you look closer, you'll recognize I'm not that special

**Author's Note:**

> Hi Guys! This is my attempt at getting back into writing again. This will probably be a 2 part story. Don't worry I'm still working on Swipe Left! Anyway, thanks for reading!

**Part 1: If you look closer, you'll recognize I'm not that special**

Rip watches the 12th AVA out of the corner of his eye, while half listening in on a mission debriefing. He watches the clone file away paperwork quickly and efficiently. Her movements sure and precise. One of the previous AVAs had established their filing system years ago and this one had picked up on the system without needing it explained. All the AVAs had been like that, picking up where the others had left off and fitting into their role seamlessly.

It was no secret that Rip employed the services of Advanced Variant Automation. When he first started the Time Bureau, he desperately needed agents. Agents who would listen to him, follow his every order without hesitation, and most importantly, were replaceable. So, to accomplish this goal, he went to the year 2213 and purchased himself a clone. The first AVA was a hard worker, a damn near perfect agent. Exactly what he needed while he was trying to get the Bureau up and running.

The perfection of the AVAs was also their major flaw. They were too perfect, their words too practiced, and their mannerisms too robotic. The AVA was human enough, but just different enough that other agents noticed. The AVAs being clones was not a secret that could remain hidden for long.

Other agents were already weary of the AVA initially, but when the first AVA died and was replaced with the second AVA, they grew visibly more uncomfortable around her. The more AVAs that passed through the Time Bureau, the less people tried to befriend or even engage with the AVAs. The last couple of AVAs were positively robotic. The clones became more efficient with each Advanced Variant Automation upgrade, but less human-like in manner. Nowadays, the other agents mostly ignored the AVA and the AVA just went about her work as usual, following their orders without question.

This AVA though, the 12th AVA, isn’t like the previous AVAs and it worries him. The 12th AVA organizes all her paperwork in purple file folders because this AVA seems to have a color preference. The previous AVAs only used plain manila folders and never once thought to choose another color.

The previous AVAs had always been obedient, never saying no to his commands or the commands of his senior agents. This AVA sometimes took creative license with her orders on missions. He only allows this because her split moment decisions more often than not end up saving lives.

The previous AVAs never reacted to anything. Nothing seemed to surprise them. They always seemed calm in the face of danger, so it surprised him when the 12th AVA flinched at the crack of thunder one afternoon. A flash of something like fear crossed her face, but he chalked it up to the fact that she had only been made a few weeks ago.

_“It’s okay Ava, it’s just thunder,” he told the clone in a soothing voice._

This AVA prefers his female agents to his male agents. The previous AVAs had no preference and were not interested interacting with other agents beyond what was required for a mission. The other AVAs seemed sexless. He’s pretty sure this AVA would be into women, if she was capable of forming real emotional attachments.

That being said, the previous AVAs did not get attached to people, but this one liked to stick by the side of Agent Gary Green. Despite telling Agent Green that the AVAs were incapable of forming meaningful attachments, the agent continued to try and befriend each AVA. This AVA seemed to like the attention.

A year passes and to his surprise the 12th AVA is still miraculously alive. This has got to be the longest living clone the Bureau has ever had. As the months fly by, the more human the 12th AVA becomes. She almost seems like a real person, almost. He allows her to move in with Agent Green, but only because she is the best at keeping Green out of trouble. They give her a real name, Ava Sharpe (not terribly creative, but the clone seems to like it) and a cover story to blend in with the rest of the world.

Rip knows that he will need to continue to monitor Ava closely. He has had one clone go rogue before and it wasn’t pretty. He thinks too much freewill may have been may be the reason behind the loss of that clone.

 

 

Sara Lance, Captain of the Waverider, portals into the Time Bureau using her stolen time currier. She might not care for the Bureau, but she has to admit that the tech is cool. Her mission today is to hunt Rip down and demand that her team be allowed to fix anachronisms without Bureau agents crawling up her ass all the time. They seemed to be everywhere she looked these days. Every time she stepped into a different time, there they were with those god-awful polyblend suits.

As she strolls down the hall, she realizes that she doesn’t actually know where Rip’s office is. She just might need to ask for directions. This floor of the Bureau is suspiciously empty however, but she stops when she spots the woman who had apprehended the Legends when they first broke into the Time Bureau. The corners of her lips turn downward as she remembers how the agent roughly pushed Ray to the ground and pointed a gun at her face. The agent in question realizes that she’s being watched and glances in her direction. The blue-gray eyes that are trained on her are cool and assessing. The agent holds her gaze for a moment before turning back to what had originally been holding her attention.

Sara turns her head in the same direction to see what has the agent so captivated. It seems that the other agents are celebrating someone’s birthday in a breakroom. The woman’s face is perfectly blank as she watches them, but the way this agent is watching the other agents so intently has her curious. She does not know much about the agent. From impromptu visit last time, she gathered that this woman had some kind of rank in the Bureau, but it seemed now that she was also an outcast.

She saunters over with a smirk on her lips. “What’s the matter? The other reindeers won’t let you join in their reindeer games?”

The agent in question tears her eyes away from the scene in front of her to look at her.

“I don’t understand,” the agent replies, with confusion marring her admittedly lovely face.

The woman was such a government stiff. “Didn’t get an invite to the party?” She tries again.

The woman blinks and says, “I’m an AVA”

Sara squints her eyes in confusion. “Okay? I’m Sara.”

The agent shakes her head. “Yes, I know your name Miss Lance. I meant that I’m an AVA.”

Sara rolls her eyes in frustration. This woman was already getting on her nerves. “I got your name the first time around.”

The woman turns to face her fully now, hands clasped behind her back. “AVA stands for Advanced Variant Automation. I’m a clone, Miss Lance.”

She rocks back on her heels. “No shit.”

Ava frowns. “Pardon?”

This wasn’t the weirdest thing that she has ever been told, but it definitely ranked up there.

“Okay, so you’re a clone.” She’s learned that it’s just easier to roll with things. She has after all died twice and is now the captain of a crew with assorted powers that travel through time together. A clone wasn’t that big of a deal in comparison.

“Yes,” Ava says with a little nod.

“And you’re out here because,” she prompts.

“I’m an AVA.”

Sara lets out a little huff of frustration. Talking to this woman was like talking to a brick wall. “Yes, you said that already.”

“You want a more thorough explanation.” The agent realizes.

“Now she gets it.”

“My presence makes people uncomfortable. To minimize discomfort, I keep a respectful distance always, unless ordered not to.”

She peers at the woman more closely. There doesn’t seem to be anything unusual about her, nothing overtly frightening either. “Why would you make people uncomfortable?”

“I’m artificial. I’m one of thousands, made in a lab. I’m not real,” the agent lists off matter-of-factly.

It sounds like something straight out of a science fiction novel and she has to actively school her features.

“You seem pretty real to me.” She says instead.

Ava whips back around to look at the break room in a quick, jerky movement. If she wasn’t watching Ava so closely, she would has missed the way the woman’s face crumpled for about half a second.

“Most people pay me no mind. It would be wise for you to do the same thing,” the agent advises.

She grins. “Well, no one’s ever accused me of being wise.”

“Shocking.” Ava deadpans.

Sara lets out a snort of an amusement. “Rude, and to think I was going to try and steal you a piece of that birthday cake.”

“Stealing is illegal,” Ava tells her sternly. “And I don’t eat cake.”

She crosses her arms over her chest. “Right, so what do you eat, little Miss Perfect?”

Ava shrugs. “I eat what I’m told to eat and that doesn’t include excessively sugary foods.”

She pauses at this. That statement just rubs her the wrong way. “That doesn’t sound like much fun.”

Ava shrugs. “I do what I’m told.”

“And do you like this?” She asks carefully.

The woman in front of her goes perfectly still. “I do what I’m told.”

She’s about to press further, but another agent interrupts them. In the presence of the other agent, Ava steps back, making herself small and unobtrusive. She has no idea who this dude is, but she already dislikes him for the way he made the other agent shrink in on herself.

“Captain Lance, I can take you to Director Hunter.” He turns to Ava and says, “You can go now.”

Ava nods. “Of course, sir.”

Okay, now she kind of hates the guy. Was it necessary to be so rude to Ava? Was her being a clone that big of a deal? She made a mental note to talk to Rip about this whole situation.

 

   
The next time Sara sees Ava, its on a mission. The legends had maybe bungled another lower level anachronism and Agent Sharpe had to maybe come in and save the day in a rather quick and efficient manner. To add insult to injury, the agent had even managed to pull her out of the trajectory of a speeding car, probably saving her life.

Currently, they were on the bridge. Agent Sharpe was trying to get more details about what had happened with the anachronism in question prior to the Time Bureau’s arrival and she was being a little shit about it. She finds herself fiddling with some buttons on the pilot console, so she doesn’t have to look at the agent’s stupid smug face, even if it is a pretty one.

“Can you just answer my questions?” Agent Sharpe says frustratedly behind her. “And could you face me when we talk please?”

Sara whips around and grins at her. “Why? So you can stare at my gorgeous face?”

She watches as the agent’s brow furrows first in confusion and then in mild disgust. “What? No!”

She smirks and gives the agent a visible once over. “You know I don’t mind, not when its someone who looks like you.”

This seems to make the other woman even more confused. Sara flirts with people. It’s what she does. It throws people off their game and allows her to slip in and take control of situations. She had thrown out some flirtatious comments earlier in the mission and was met with stoic silence, but now she’s getting a reaction and that in itself is interesting. The befuddled look currently on the agent’s face is almost endearing, almost, because Agent Sharpe is still largely a huge annoyance to her and the Legends.

A seductive smile spreads slowly across her lips and she watches as confusion turns to wariness on the other woman’s face.

“What-. What are you doing?” Agent Sharpe stutters out.

Sara shrugs and turns around again to fiddle with something on the screen in front of the pilot’s chair. “I can’t compliment a pretty lady?”

“Are you flirting with me?” Agent Sharpe asks, her voice colored with incredulity.

She turns around briefly to throw a wink in the agent’s direction. “For the last couple of hours. Thanks for noticing.”

To her delight the agent flushes pink. “Stop that.”

She turns around fully to grin at the agent. “I think you like it.”

“I do not,” Agent Sharpe protests. But Sara thinks she really does.

The agent’s face goes blank in the robotic way that reminds Sara that Ava is a clone. Not that she cares about the clone thing, as far as she’s concerned Ava is her own person. A person who is less than 2 years old and was made in a lab, but still a person nonetheless.

“You really shouldn’t do that,” the agent says in strained voice.

Sara purses her lips and then asks, “And why shouldn’t I do that? Are you dating someone?”

“No,” Agent Sharpe says like that’s the obvious answer. “You know what I am. That sort of thing isn’t done with clones.”

Sara scoffs. “Is that like an official rule? You’re not allowed to date? Too young or something?”

“An AVA cannot form real emotional attachments to people or things,” the agent states.

She gives the woman a sharp look. “Bullshit, I don’t believe that for a second.”

Ava’s eyes widen in surprise and her pink lips part in a way that is only vaguely distracting to Sara. “I-. I should be going now. I have enough information for my report. Have a pleasant day, Captain Lance.”

Sara watches as Agent Sharpe opens a portal faster than she’s ever seen and disappears. Well, Sara thinks, at least Ava has conquered the very human skill of running away from difficult situations.

 

 

She’s sees Ava frequently over the next few weeks and is surprised that she starts to see the woman less as Agent Sharpe and more as Ava. She tries to ignore the little burst of happiness she feels when she walks onto the bridge one day to find Ava discussing something with Zari. What appears to be a tricked out looking USB drive sits on the console in front of them. Her resident hacker listens as Ava explains about the anachronism database update the USB contains.

Zari soon leaves with the USB drive in hand, but the agent stays and stares out of a window watching temporal matter swirl around outside the Waverider. She approaches Ava, but the other woman doesn’t hear her, seemingly lost in thought.

“Agent Sharpe, I didn’t know that you were going to be gracing us with your presence today.”

Ava startles slightly, finally noticing that she’s no longer alone.

Sara arches an eyebrow questioningly. “Penny for your thoughts?”

“I only accept small bills.” Ava says seriously.

She opens her mouth to speak, but the expression on the agent’s face makes her stop. Its not a smile, no she’s never seen Ava smile, but those blue-gray eyes are definitely amused.

She arches an eyebrow at the agent. “Are you making jokes now?”

“AVAs aren’t capable of making jokes.”

Sara only has minimal information on what the other AVAs are like thanks to Gideon, but this one in particular doesn’t seem like the rest of the clones. That much is clear. She doesn’t match the fembot description provided to her by the Advanced Variant Automation company.

“Right. It just seems like you’ve got a lot on your mind.”

Ava looks down and puts a hand on her neck. “I was just thinking that I’ve been alive for two years today.”

“Oh, it’s your birthday!” Sara says cheerfully.

Ava nods shyly. “Something like that, I guess.”

“We have to celebrate,” she declares. She still remembers that time when she caught Ava staring longingly at a breakroom birthday party she wasn’t invited to.

She gathers the other agents in the kitchen for the impromptu birthday party. She’s managed to fabricate a cake with pink frosting and purple piping that spells out ‘Happy Birthday Ava,’ and Ray and Nate have somehow scrounged up balloons and party hats. Ava sits at the kitchen table, wearing a party hat that sits at a jaunty angle atop her head, looking adorable and eyeing the cake warily.

Ava turns to her with an uneasy expression on her face and tells her, “I’m not allowed to eat excessively sugary foods. It’s not healthy. Director Hunter’s orders.”

She gives Ava a pointed look. “Well Rip’s not here, is he?”

Ava looks around briefly as if expecting the director to be walking around the corner at any moment. She hates the nervous look on Ava’s face. She’s aware that Ava takes orders from Rip and from other agents, but she’s beginning to realize how little choice Ava actually has in her own life and its kind of pissing her off.

“Ava,” she says, her voice growing serious. “When you’re on this ship, you make your own decisions. Screw what Rip and everyone else tell you. Now, do you want some cake?”

“I do,” Ava says while nodding vigorously. “It always looks like it would taste really good.”  
Her heart kind of breaks a little at the yearning she hears in Ava’s voice. She wants Ava to have all the cake now. She would bake her a damn cake every day if it would make her happy.

“Wait, wait!” Sara runs over to a drawer in the kitchen and pulls out some birthday candles and matches. Ava watches in fascination as she places two pink candles on the cake and lights them.

Sara smiles at the birthday girl. “Make a wish and blow out the candles.”

She watches in confusion as Ava’s face falls slightly at that.

“A wish? I don’t think mine can come true.” The agent trains her eyes on the tabletop and consequently misses the exchange of glances between the Legends. Ava shrugs and says in a small resigned voice. “I don’t think wishes are for me.”

Okay, she might actually murder Rip now. Her heart aches at the agent’s words.

“Yes, they are,” Zari blurts out. “They are for you.” The genuine anger in the hacker’s voice is surprising. Or maybe it isn’t, with Zari being from a police state where there was very little choice and freedom was limited, maybe she can relate. “You’re allowed to hope, Ava.”

Ray and Nate nod in agreement.

“Go on,” Amaya says in her soft calming voice. “Make a wish, sweetheart.”

“Yeah, make a wish pantsuit,” Mick grunts out.

Sara has never been more proud of her crew. She smiles encouragingly at Ava and Ava looks at her and then at the Legends and seems to come to a decision. She watches as the agent closes her eyes and blows out the candles. While the Legends erupt in cheers, she can’t help but wonder what Ava wished for.

 

 

The Waverider touches down in a clearing in the woods somewhere in Ontario, Canada in the year 1845. Sara rolls her eyes when she sees that the Time Bureau has beat them there. She does a quick scan of the clearing, eyes stopping when she spots Ava talking to a small cluster of young agents, probably cadets.

The Legends spill out behind her as she strolls out of the ship and the agents in the field spare them only a quick glance, before turning their attention back to their fearless leader, Agent Sharpe.

Sara gives each Legend their instructions and makes them promise to check in with her in half an hour. They leave her in two groups, one going north, the other heading south. She pauses to watch Ava order some of the cadets around and smiles and then tells herself to stop. Ava, being all bossy should not be cute. It’s not. The agent barks out a few commands and then the cadets are splitting off into pairs and disappearing into the woods.

She approaches the agent once it’s just the two of them in the clearing. Ava is standing ramrod straight when she reaches her side, her whole body is tense and her face arranged in that robotically blank face that puts Sara on edge.

“Good evening, Captain Lance.” Ava’s voice is even, no inflections, no hints of emotion.

Sara frowns. She expected at least an eye roll at the Legends’ presence. Still Sara gives her a small smile.

“Well that wasn’t the warm welcome I’m used to.”

Ava clasps her hands behind her back and looks off in the distance scanning the perimeter.

“I apologize Captain Lance. I can try something different if you’d like?”

Sara tenses at her words. Something seems off. She peers more closely and Ava doesn’t so much as flinch when she takes a step forward suddenly. She’s know that Rip has had several clones before Ava and she wonders now if this is her Ava.

“Ava?” She says cautiously.

Something flickers across the agent’s face, too fast for her to name. Ava looks over her shoulder and then all around the clearing as if making sure no one else is watching them. The agent doesn’t answer her, instead Ava keeps staring blankly at the trees in front of them.

Something is definitely wrong. If something happened to Ava or if Rip did something to her or replaced her, she was going to scream or hit someone. Probably hit someone.

“Is it you?” She tries again, this time her voice is just a whisper.

She reaches out and gently grabs the other woman’s hand. She just has to know if this is her Ava. It’s important. She knows that Ava isn’t a Legend, but she feels protective of her nonetheless. She isn’t even sure why. Maybe it was just the right thing to do.

The expression on the agent’s face doesn’t change at her question, but she feels Ava squeeze her hand ever so gently before pulling away.

“It’s me,” Ava says softly.

“What’s going on?”

Ava shushes her, then looks around again discretely. “I think…. I think there’s something wrong with me. I don’t think I’m like the other AVAs.” The worry is evident in the agent’s voice.

“You’re not.” Sara easily agrees.

Distress is clear on the agent’s face. “Don’t say that!” Ava hisses.

“You are different,” she whispers back fiercely. “You are special. You are not like anyone else.”

“Don’t say that! It’s dangerous.” There is desperation and fear in the agent’s voice this time and Sara feels something in her chest tighten at the sound of it.

“What do you mean?”

“It means that if they find me to be defective, they’ll send me back to Advanced Variant Automation to be reprocessed.”

She’s about to press further, when a pair of agents pops out of the brush. Ava leaves her behind in favor of addressing the two cadets.

She doesn’t know what reprocessing is, but she sure as hell is going to find out.


	2. Part 2: Oh, if you love me, won't you please reply?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, it looks like this is going to be a three parter. Anyways enjoy!

She doesn’t see Ava for a solid two weeks after the fiasco in the woods. She tries not to worry too much, but completely fails in doing so. She checks all of Gideon’s databases to figure out what reprocessing means, but comes up empty. She thinks she knows what it might mean and desperately hopes that she’s wrong.

She’s heard that Ava lives with Agent Gary Green and persuades Zari to hack into the Time Bureau, so she can pinpoint the coordinates to Agent Green’s residence. When she steps through the portal, the room she finds herself in is incredibly unremarkable. The walls are white and bare. There is a bed resting against the back wall covered with a light purple comforter. A night stand with a lamp sits to the left of the bed and dresser sits across from it.

The only interesting thing about the room is the bookshelf that sits to the right of the bed. Its packed with books. Apparently, the Bureau does not restrict what Ava reads. She spots the Harry Potter Series, The Chronicles of Narnia, and the entire collection of A Series of Unfortunate Events among her books. She snorts in amusement. She can almost imagine Ava staying up late into the night reading under the covers with a flashlight in hand.

There are other books too, books on nature and art, there are biology texts, history books, and to her surprise there are romance novels. She pulls one off the shelf only to see that it features two women kissing on the cover. She purses her lips and then smirks. It doesn’t really surprise her. She has been getting vibes off the woman since the day they met.

The sound of the door banging against the wall jolts her from her wanderings and she whips around to see Ava pointing a gun at her. She raises her hands in surrender and winks at the agent. Ava scowls at her, but lowers her gun.

“Captain Lance, to what do I owe this unexpected pleasure,” the agent asks with annoyance coloring her voice.

She shrugs nonchalantly. “Oh, you know, I was just in the neighborhood.”

“Sara,” Ava warns.

She rolls her eyes. “You’re no fun.”

“It’s not in my coding.”

Sara squints at the agent, not sure if Ava is joking again or actually serious. Joking, probably joking. Not knowing what else to do, she plops herself down on Ava’s bed and settles in to watch the agent putter around her dresser.

“By all means make yourself comfortable,” Ava grumbles.

She grins. “Why thank you Agent Sharpe, I will.”

She lays back on the bed with her head resting on the pillow, the comforting scent of Ava surrounding her. The bed is not too firm or too soft, a happy medium, and it feels amazing. The last couple of nights had been rough on her. Hours spent awake trying to avoid those awful nightmares full of the faces of people she had killed as an assassin. The opening of a drawer brings her back to earth and she refocuses her attention on Ava who was standing in front of the dresser with her back towards her.

The agent had somehow managed to shed both her standard issue blazer and pants, leaving the woman wearing just a white button up, exposing what seemed like miles of glorious legs for her viewing pleasure. She makes strangled sound at the sight before her, but covers it up with a cough.

“What are you doing?” Her voice sounds weird, even to her.

“Changing out of my uniform.” Ava says matter-of-factly.

“Right, right.”

Ava slips on a pair of lavender pajama bottoms and then begins to unbutton her shirt. There is a rustle of fabric as the shirt slides off Ava’s shoulders and down to the ground. Sara knows that she should look away and give Ava her privacy, but her eyes remain glued to the agent, mesmerized by all the skin on display.

The bra follows the shirt and a thousand inappropriate thoughts run unbidden in her mind. Sara swallows and finally looks away. She turns on her side and trains her eyes on the wall in front of her. Moments pass before she feels the bed dip on the other side of her. When she rolls over, she finds Ava, clad in her lavender pajama set, laying on her back with her hands clasped over her stomach. The agent’s hair is down and tumbling across her shoulders in golden waves.

Ava looks different like this. Softer, but no less beautiful. She props herself up on her elbow, supporting her head with a fist beneath her chin.

Ava turns her head, gray-blue eyes focusing on her. “Why are you here Sara?”

“I haven’t seen you for a while. I got worried.”

Ava nods and the movement dislodges a lock of hair from behind her ear. “I’m still me. They were watching me before”

Sara can’t help herself. She reaches out and tucks the lock back behind Ava’s ear. The agent’s eyes slip closed in contentment for half a second. It’s possible she might adore this woman.

“Who’s watching you?”

“Rip mostly and a few senior agents. My behavior hasn’t been as predictable as the previous AVA’s. They’re afraid, I’ll go rogue. I think it must of happened with one of the other Ava’s before, a malfunction or something. I think it’s okay now. I’ve either thrown them off my trail or they’re just too busy with Damien Darhk and his daughter.”

“So, you’re in the clear now?”

“It would seem so, Miss Lance.”

Sara lies down so that her head rests on the pillow again. “Good, good.”

She sighs and closes her eyes. The last couple of sleepless nights finally catching up with her.

“You look tired,” Ava observes.

Sara snorts and says with her eyes still closed. “Jerk.”

“I didn’t mean that as an insult. I just meant-.”

“I know,” she says quickly, cutting Ava off. “I haven’t been sleeping well.”

Ava doesn’t say anything after that. Sara starts only slightly when she feels a hand in her hair. The touches are tentative at first, but she soon finds herself being lulled to sleep as the agent strokes her hair.

“Is this okay,” Ava whispers.

She’s at the at edge of consciousness now and just barely manages to reply. “Mmm S’good.”

“Sweet dreams, Miss Lance.”

Sara sleeps blissfully for a span of two hours before the nightmares begin. Another face she will never get out of her mind and more blood on her hands. She wakes with a start, eyes flashing as she looks wildly around the room before remembers where she is. By the illumination of the bedside lamp, she can make out the worried features of Ava’s face.

“Hey, hey it’s okay Sara. I’m right here.” Ava’s voice is soft and calming.

Ava places a hand over her racing heart. It’s a warm and comforting weight. She places a hand over the agent’s, holding her there until little by little her heart stops racing.

“Nightmare?” Ava asks.

“Yes. They’re the worst.”

“I get those too sometimes,” Ava offers up. Sara is glad for the distraction.

“About what?”

“About the lab I was made in. I get lost in a sea of faces exactly like mine. I guess it’s not really a nightmare, more like the truth.”

She feels Ava tense and try to pull her hand back, instead Sara threads their fingers together and continues to hold Ava’s hand close to her heart.

“You might be genetically identical to the rest of the AVA’s, but you’re nothing like them.” At least from what Sara’s read. There is nothing robotic or cold about her Ava.

Ava scoffs. “Because I’m defective.”

“You are not defective,” she chides. “You are unique and wonderful.”

“I just wish-.” And then Ava stops herself and turns on her side to face away from her. “Nevermind. It doesn’t matter.”

Sara sighs at the stubborn women, but lets her have her silence. Instead she slots herself in behind Ava, spooning her.

“What are you doing,” Ava asks her indignantly, but the agent doesn’t move away from her.

“Cuddling you. I’m a ferocious sleep cuddler. If I’m staying the night, I might as well cut to the chase,” she says with humor in her voice.

“This isn’t terrible.” Ava says reluctantly after Sara puts an arm around her and pulls the agent even closer to her.

Sara lets out a snort of laughter. “Don’t lie, you love it.”

“Whatever. I do not.” Ava grumps.

She props herself up and leans over the agent briefly to turn off the lamp near Ava’s side of the bed. She catches the agent’s sullen expression and cute pout before plunging them into darkness.

“You’re adorable,” she can’t help but say.

Ava lets out a long-suffering sigh in response.

“So adorable.” She teases.

“Miss Lance, if you don’t shut up. I will kick you out of this bed.”

“Rude. Alright grumpypants, let’s go back to sleep.”

0oo0oo0

  
They start to spar together. It’s rare that she meets someone who can match her in hand to hand combat, so Sara never passes up an opportunity to get in a sparring session with Ava. They’ve been going at it for a while now. She’s sweaty and growing tired and she can see that Ava is also slowing down.

She uses the hem of her sweat soaked shirt to mop more sweat off her face. Her shirt falls back into place and she grimaces at the feel of moist fabric sticking to her skin. Before she can think better of it, she pulls her shirt over her head and discards it on the ground next to her, leaving her in just her sports bra and yoga pants.

She gets in a ready stance and waits for Ava to do the same, but the agent is frozen in place. Those gray-blue eyes are looking her up and down with interest. She pauses and takes in the agent’s flushed cheeks, her roaming eyes, and the way Ava bites her lower lip while watching her. Heat pools low in her belly at that hungry look.

Ava snaps out of her daze and throws a punch at her abdomen. She blocks her hit and they continue fighting in earnest. Somehow Ava manages to tackle her and pin her down, but by this point she’s too tired to care. She’s laid out flat on her back while Ava hovers above her on her hands and knees, with the agent’s hands gripping her wrists and keeping them pinned on the ground. She admits defeat and rolls her eyes when Ava gloats over her win.

Sara props herself up on her elbows expecting Ava to move, but the agent doesn’t back off, if anything she gets even closer. Ava sits back on her lap, effectively straddling her hips with her thighs and keeping her in place. The training room is silent now with only the sounds of their ragged breaths filling the room. The agent’s hungry gaze jumps from her abs, to her cleavage, to her face. Her lips curl into a smirk as she lets Ava have her fill.

“See something you like?”

Ava blinks and looks her over slowly one more time before answering. “Yes.”

She gives Ava a crooked smile. Was Ava actually flirting with her?

Sara gives Ava a once over of her own, the heat of her gaze clear as day. “You’re not so bad yourself.”

Ava seems to consider her words, tilting her head quizzically as if she’s never considered her own beauty. She wonders if Ava knows what a knockout she is.

“Am I aesthetically pleasing?” Ava asks, her brow furrowed and her question genuine.

Sara rolls her eyes at the agent’s phrasing. “You’re not a decoration Ava.” She takes a moment to push a few strands of hair our of Ava’s eyes. “And yeah, you’re beautiful.”

“Objectively speaking, you are very pretty,” Ava tells her and Sara’s cheeks warm at the compliment. “At the moment, however, I believe that the more appropriate word would be hot. You’re hot.” Ava pauses and asks, “Am I using that right?”

Sara laughs, a belly aching laugh. Ava never stops surprising her. “Yes, Aves, you’re using it correctly.”

“Oh good.” Ava beams at her and she can’t help gasp.

“What? What’s the matter,” Ava asks, suddenly concerned.

“I’m fine, I’m fine. It’s just in all the time I’ve known you, I’ve never seen you smile.”

Ava puts a hand up to her mouth, covering her smile. “Oh, I try not to. The last few AVAs were programed to smile all the time and it bothered the other agents.”

She gently pulls the agents hand away from her face. “Well, they’re idiots. Your smile is gorgeous.”

Ava ducks her head and looks at her shyly from beneath full lashes, a soft smile still on her lips. Before she can think better of it, she reaches out to cup Ava’s cheek in her hand, the tips of her fingers sliding into impossibly soft hair.

She worries that she may have crossed a line by being this familiar with the agent and tries to pull her hand back, but Ava stops her. Ava places her hand over her own, anchoring her in place. She watches as Ava closes her eyes and leans into her hand. Sara holds her breath, not wanting the moment to end.

“You’re the only one who ever touches me,” Ava says with her eyes still closed.

“Yeah?” Sara breathes out.

She had wondered about that. Okay, she had wondered if Ava had ever been intimate with anyone, had ever been kissed. She thinks she remembers something about Rip not allowing her to date. She hopes that Ava remembers that those rules don’t apply when she’s here.

Ava frowns. “Well sometimes Gary hugs me, but he always squeezes me too tight.”

She chuckles at that. “He’s probably just excited to see you.”

“I like it better when you hold me.” Ava admits.

“You did like cuddling! I knew it!” She crows, her Caribbean blue eyes sparkling with amusement.

Ava pushes her hand away in mock annoyance and chuckles. “Don’t let it go to your head, Captain.”

“I make no promises.” She pauses and then cautiously says, “You know, we could get cleaned up.” Separately of course. “Get into bed. Watch a movie. Cuddle?”

A better plan would be to get cleaned up together in the shower, fall into bed and do something that is decidedly not watching a movie. The snuggling though would definitely still happen, just later, because she is a total ho for cuddling. But Ava is new to, well, everything. She likes Ava, like really likes her, and it’s been so long since she has felt this way about anyone. She doesn’t want to rush it or scare Ava away. She doesn’t even really know if Ava likes her like that.

Ava looks at her thoughtfully though. She knows her words could be taken as another joke or taken at face value, but when Ava opens her mouth to reply, the ringing of a phone interrupts them.

Ava sighs. “It’s probably Rip. I should get going.”

Ava stands up and she misses the warmth of her on her lap immediately. She schools her features to not let her disappointment show as Ava packs up and disappears through a portal.

0oo0oo0

The Time Bureau is in chaos when Ava arrives back from her latest mission. She is the only survivor from this truly disastrous attempt at taking out Damien Darhk and his wayward daughter.

The plan had seemed perfect to begin with, but by the time they had drawn the Darhks out, they realized their mistake. It was a trap. They never had the element of surprise and her team had suffered because of it. By shear dumb luck, she somehow managed to be just outside of the magic blast radius that took down the entire team. During her hasty exit, she had grabbed one agent that looked like he might still be alive and tumbled through a portal onto the main floor of the Bureau.

The floor erupts in chaos upon her arrival. They see her, looking relatively unscathed, and the agent next to her lying crumpled on the floor. A flurry of questions are thrown her way and she answers them all calmly and patiently, but the voices only grow louder and angrier. The loudest of these voices is Agent Roger Davin.

Davin has always been a particular thorn in her side. He has never hid his anti-clone sentiments and of all the agents, he has always gone out of his way to point out how not human she was, how different she was from everyone else. She always got this tight nervous feeling in her chest when she was around him.

Despite all the yelling going on around her, Ava feels completely numb, still in disbelief that she had lost her team. This has never happened to her before. She has been successful in almost all of her missions with only minimal casualties.

She had worked with these agents every day and now they were just gone. They weren’t like her. They couldn’t be replaced just as easily as she could. She feels their loss keenly and there is this new heaviness in her heart that feels just awful.

Ava is drawn out of her thoughts suddenly when she finds herself being hauled forward. The momentum of the pull sends her stumbling over her feet, but Agent Davin’s tight grip on the lapels of her blazer keep her from falling. Davin is still yelling at her, asking her questions that she doesn’t have answers too.

“What the hell did you do clone? How could you fuck up this badly?!” He growls at her.

“I don’t expect that you would have done any better. Leadership isn’t really your forte, now is it,” she tells him. Her words come out sharp and cruel, not the steady even tone she usually uses. She’s angry, because its easy to be angry right now.

And what she said was true. Davin is a junior agent, with poor leadership skills. He did not have a mind for strategy and was too impulsive and too hot tempered. It showed when Davin failed his Bureau Advancement Exam, a failure that Ava knows he’s very much embarrassed about.

His hand strikes her face in retaliation. The sound of the strike reverberates through the room like a crack of thunder and the force of it splits her lip and leaves half her face stinging in pain. She stumbles back in shock, eyes on Davin. She can see his hand winding back for another strike, but she is frozen in her spot. She thinks, maybe she deserves this.

“That’s enough,” a voice yells out from somewhere in the background.

The crowd of agents part as Director Hunter comes striding through them to stand in front of her. She shrinks away from him, her cheeks burning with shame. She had failed her mission. She had failed him.

The portal that he had walked through was still open and the Legends come spilling out after him with Sara leading them, still in her White Canary getup. The captain’s eyes are electric, sparking with fury. Her body is tense and her hands are closed in tight fists as she stalks over to where her and Director Hunter stand.

She tries to step back and make herself smaller, invisible. There are more emotions running through her in this moment than she has felt in her two short years alive. Anger, grief, embarrassment, pain, disbelief, and so many more. It feels like she’s collapse in on herself, like a dying star. She isn’t equipped to deal with so many emotions and as far as she knows, most AVAs don’t feel this much, ever. They aren’t supposed to. Emotions get in the way of orders and made AVAs less efficient.

Her breaths came in shorter and something hot and wet rolls down her cheek. That drop of liquid is followed by another and then another and she realizes that she is crying. Something she has never experienced before, something she is sure an AVA shouldn’t be able to do.

The room is dead silent and all eyes are on her. The faces of the other agents express a range of emotions from curiosity, to surprise, to guilt.

Sara watches her with concerned eyes for a few moments and then seems to come to some sort of decision. The captain spins around, hauls her right arm back and decks Agent Davin. He goes down with a thud and wisely chooses to stay down

“Sara! Was that really necessary?” Director Hunter admonishes.

“Absolutely.”

Sara glares down at the agent on the ground. “If you ever lay a hand on her again, I’ll remove it for you, finger by finger. That goes for all of you,” Sara says, looking out at the sea of agents.

Agent Davin scowls at the Captain and growls out, “Whatever, clone fucker.”

Something in the captain snaps and she watches as Sara launches herself at Davin, blade suddenly at his throat. Chaos erupts again. The Legends rushes in and pull Sara off of Davin.

“Everyone clear out!” Director Hunter yells. “Sara, Agent Sharpe, with me now!”

Minutes later she finds herself sitting in a chair in front of the director’s desk. Hunter and Sara argue with raised voices off to the side. Sara’s voice is sharp, like the blades she always carries. Director Hunter’s voice is placating and grating on her ears.

“This is wrong Rip and you know it.”

There is silence for a beat.

“I know,” Rip finally admits.

“Then fucking do something about it!”

Sara glares at the director and then glances over to her, making sure that she’s still okay. There’s a tenderness in the captain’s eyes that makes her heart ache. No one has ever cared this much about her.

Her lower lip begins to tremble again and she has to look away from Sara. She looks up again when she feels a steady hand on her back. Sara’s at her side now and Rip looks on helplessly between them.

“This isn’t you Rip. You’re better than this. Ava is a person. She has feelings. She has likes and dislikes just like anyone else. She has friends-.”

“Sara, stop.” Worry flares up in her. Now Director Hunter will know exactly how defective she is, but Sara ignores her and continues on.

“She deserves to be free. She deserves to be happy. She deserves to live her life the way she wants to.”

“I know,” Director Hunter says quietly.

“Then why are you doing this?”

“It’s complicated and I can’t just make the decision to let her go by myself. Sara, there’s a whole board.”

“Well, screw the board. I don’t care. Fix this.” Sara’s voice is low and absolutely deadly. “We’re going now.”

Rip sighs. “You can’t take her with you.”

“Oh, I think I can,” Sara practically taunts. And if on cue, the Legends come bursting in. “Ava, lets go.”

She wants to. She really wants to, but at the same time Director Hunter orders her to stay. And so she does. Sara looks at her in disbelief and she hangs her head in shame.

“I’m sorry,” she whispers.

“Don’t be,” Sara says softly. “Mick grab her.”

She is unceremoniously thrown over Mr. Rory’s shoulder in a fireman’s carry and brought through a portal onto the Waverider. She ends up in the med bay with Amaya and Zari fluttering around her. Her split lip and bruised face are healed, but she doesn’t really feel any better.

She brushes the wetness off her cheeks and pulls herself together, letting her face go carefully blank. Zari fidgets uneasily beside her and Amaya frowns at her sudden change in demeanor.

“Hey, you’re okay,” Amaya says kindly, while reaching out to squeeze her shoulder comfortingly. She flinches away violently on reflex.

“Sorry. It’s not you.” And its not. Amaya has never been anything but sweet and kind to her.

Amaya gives her a small sad smile. “Don’t worry about it.”

When Sara finally walks into the med bay, she lets out a sigh of relief. Amaya, Zari, and Mick quietly sneak out, leaving the two of them alone. When it’s just them, Sara takes her face in her hands and places a sweet kiss on her forehead. Tears burn behind her eyes and her face feels hot. She’s wrapped up in a hug before the first tear even falls.

“It’s okay, baby. I’ve got you.”

She stays on the Waverider and lets Sara fuss over her. She eats dinner with the Legends who try very hard to cheer her up. Its nice. She imagines that maybe this is what it might be like to have a family. At the end of the day, she knows that she has to go back to the Time Bureau. She has to deal with Director Hunter and the loss of her team. There are reports to fill out and family members to contact.

But after the events of today, she feels different somehow, lighter when she knows she probably shouldn’t. There’s a little spark of what she thinks has to be hope, burning inside her now. With Sara and the rest of the Legends fighting for her, freedom might be a possibility someday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Catch me on tumblr @KatrinaKenyon


	3. Part 3: ‘Cause baby all I’ll ever be is your dirty computer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So finally posting a new chapter. I originally planned for this story to be in three parts, but it looks like its going to be in four.

Gary had loved all the AVA’s that had passed through the Time Bureau. Each one of them was just a little bit different from the previous one, but most other agents never noticed. Most agents were repulsed by the AVA’s and he never understood why. They were so pretty and so smart and had such shiny hair.

He had tried to befriend most of the AVA’s, but remained unsuccessful until the most recent AVA, his Ava. His Ava is nothing like the previous AVA’s though. This Ava is his best friend and roommate, and he’s been nothing but thrilled about the fact that Ava prefers to spend her time with him. No one was ever as happy to see him as Ava was, even if she didn’t smile much. He could tell that she was glad for his company at the end of the day.

He had to admit that his Ava has been spending more time with the Legends, especially Captain Lance, but that was okay because the Legends were like the definition of cool. Secretly, he wished he could be a Legend. Be a hero, kick ass, and go on adventures. It would sure beat the desk job he currently had at the Bureau.

Earlier tonight, once Ava had returned to the Bureau to deal with the repercussions of the loss of her team and the showdown between Captain Lance and the Director, he had watched Director Hunter call her into his office. He had taken it upon himself to wait for her, pacing and wringing his wrists anxiously outside the door.

Sweet Beebo, he had been so nervous for his friend.

When Ava had finally come back out, she had looked exactly like she usually did. You would have never have known that she had cried for the very first time that day. When they got home later, it was a different story. Gary has seen Ava smile only a handful of times, but as soon as they walked through the door of their shared apartment, she practically beamed at him. She looked so beautiful like that and it was such a relief knowing that he wasn’t going to lose his best friend, such a relief that she wasn’t going back to the AVA corporation. He could have kissed her then, he was so happy, but Ava has already told him to respect her personal space and he always does. Well, he had to sneak in a hug every now and again.

Ava would have more freedom now, more choices, and he couldn’t be happier. There were so many things she couldn’t do before and he can’t wait to do all those things with her.They both know she isn’t completely free because they know the rest of the board is still wary of her. Also, it’s kind of hard to be free when the Time Bureau literally owns you, but for now it’s enough.

They’re sitting on the couch at the moment drinking hot chocolate, which they used to drink in secret, but is now no longer forbidden. He guesses that he can take all of their forbidden foods out of their hiding places (the Bureau does a random spot check of the apartment once month) and put them into the pantry.

Ava has had a long, long day. First that terrible mission, then the blowup with Davin, Director Hunter, and Captain Lance, and then she was kind of kidnapped by the Legends. He can see how exhausted she is now. Its late, way past Ava’s Time Bureau curfew (not that it matters anymore). He’s removes the mug from Ava’s hands once she’s done and places a purple fuzzy blanket over their laps. Ava leans infinitesimally closer to him, signaling to him that this is one of those times that she would like some comfort. He eagerly obliges and wraps an arm around her pulling her close, while Ava rests her head on his shoulder.

“Everything is going to be okay. I just know it,” he tells her. He just hopes that’s true.

A phone rings breaking the silence and they ignore it, but when it rings again Gary glances over at the table.

“Oh, it’s your phone.”

“I know,” Ava says tiredly. “Its Sara. I kind of ran away from the Legends. I had to fix my mess at the Time Bureau.”

The phone rings again and his friend makes no move to answer it.

He nudges her. “You should answer it. There’s no curfew anymore.”

He can’t imagine that they’ll stop monitoring her calls though, nor will they stop tracking her movements, but at least she could go where she wanted to go (within reason) at whatever time she wanted to.

“What if she’s mad that I snuck off the Waverider?” Ava says worriedly.

“I think she would understand why you had to.” He picks up the phone off the coffee table and hands it to her.

“This is Agent Sharpe,” Ava says, her voice too stiff and too formal for a social call.

He almost facepalms. How many times had he told her that she didn’t need to answer her phone like that when it wasn’t a work-related call? They had been working on phone etiquette recently. Sara was quite the texter, but Ava didn’t text much beyond what was necessary. His friend found the barrage of emojis, memes, and selfies she had recently begun receiving from Captain Lance confounding.

She’s slowly learning, but still refuses to use emojis or send selfies. Although, he’s noticed that she has saved all of the captain’s selfies including the ones where Sara shows off her abs. They’re actually really impressive.

He hopes these lovebirds get together for real. He ships them so hard.

Gary is close enough to hear the captain’s voice over the phone already, but he leans even closer not even bothering to pretend he wasn’t eavesdropping. Ava only gives him a look, but otherwise says nothing.

“Hey Aves. I just wanted to check in on you. You disappeared after dinner. I was worried.”

“I had some work to do back at the Time Bureau,” Ava says cautiously.

“Ava,” the captain softly admonishes.

Ava worries her bottom lip with her teeth and tenses up just a little beside him. “Are you mad at me?”

“No baby, I’m not mad at you. I just wish you would have told me you were going back.”

He almost squees out loud when she calls his friend baby. This might be the cutest thing he’s ever witnessed. Avalance is definitely going to happen.

“Are you okay?” the captain asks, sounding worried.

“I’m fine,” Ava responds, but it’s in that flat monotone voice she uses when she’s pretending to be one of those emotionless AVA clones. She’ll never be like the other AVA’s. He knows this in his heart.

He hears a sigh on the other side. The captain doesn’t seem reassured by her answer either.

“Gary are you there,” Sara says loudly. Ava winces and pulls the phone away from her ear.

He moves his face closer to the phone. “Yes! Yes, I’m siting right next to her.”

“Great. Is she okay?” Sara asks.

He doesn’t answer. Instead he takes the phone out of Ava’s hand, turns it onto camera mode, and faces the screen towards the two of them.

“What are you doing?” Ava says irritatedly.

“Gary,” Sara warns.

“Just look at the camera and smile,” he tells her and for once she allows him to take her picture.

It’s a selfie of the two of them with him smiling brightly and Ava next to him with a small hesitant smile on her lips. She’s wearing her usual lavender pajama set, her hair is down and messy, and her gray blue eyes belay her exhaustion. She might not be beaming, but she looks cute, like a sad little puppy you just want to hug forever.

He sends the picture to the captain before Ava can complain. Ava scowls at him and snatches her phone back.

“Is this-? Ava Sharpe did you just send me a selfie?” Sara asks incredulously.

Ava glares at him. “Gary did that! Not me.”

“Aww, you look cute,” Sara coos.

“Thank you!” He says earnestly.

The captain snorts. “Gary, I meant Ava.”

“Oh,” he says, disappointment bleeding through his voice.

“You’re cute too Gary,” Sara adds, humoring him.

He grins. “I am? Oh, yay!”

Sara chuckles. “Okay, okay, can I go back to talking to Ava now?”

“Hey,” Ava says letting the captain know it was just her now.

“Hey,” Sara says back, that one word infused with so much warmth and affection. “You’ve had a rough day, Aves. Do you want me to come over?”

He watches Ava bite her lower lip, as if to stop herself from saying yes right away, and gives her a nudge.

“Say yes,” he mouths.

“Ava, honey,” Sara says gently. “If you need me for anything, no matter how small, I’ll be there. Okay?” The sincerity in the captain’s voice is strong and true.

Ava’s lower lip trembles and he worries that she’s going to start crying again. He doesn’t think his little heart could take her crying. He personally hasn’t seen her cry, but the Time Bureau rumor mill is abuzz with stories about the AVA clone having emotions.

“Okay,” Ava finally says, her voice cracking on the word.

A portal opens up instantly just in front of the coffee table. Captain Lance steps through, wearing black sleeping shorts and navy-blue tank top and looking like an absolute snack in his humble opinion. He watches as Ava jumps up and rushes into the captain’s arms, immediately engulfed by the other woman.

Sara murmurs something to Ava, too quiet for him to hear and his friend nods in response. He watches as Sara laces her fingers with Ava’s and pulls her towards her bedroom. He hopes that Sara will be able to soothe Ava and help her cope with the mess of things that happened today.

Losing a fellow agent was hard enough. He can’t imagine what it’s like to lose your entire team in one go. His poor Ava.

He worries about there being even more repercussions than the angry mob of agents that assembled earlier today. He can’t imagine that the other agents will be happy when they learn the AVA will be getting more freedoms. They probably think she should be punished, even though the failed mission wasn’t Ava’s fault.

At least she has him and Captain Lance and the rest of the Legends looking out for her.

 

 

The Legends had just finished their fourth mission of the week and everyone was really feeling it. They were worn out and in low spirits. The last mission in particular was really rough and they ended up having to call the Time Bureau in for back up, which ultimately resulted in Agent Sharpe berating them for at least 10 minutes in front of a handful of cadets and junior agents.

It was humiliating and the fact that it was Ava doing it only made it worse. Sara knew that they deserved it. They shouldn’t have rushed into this anachronism without much of a plan, especially when they were still tired from the last mission and basically running on fumes. They should have deferred this anachronism to the Time Bureau.

She tried to make eye contact with the agent, but Ava only shook her head before leading her team through a portal. It was times like this when she hated how professional the other woman was, how easy it was for her to separate her work life from her personal life.

To be honest, Sara wasn’t particularly happy with the Time Bureau in general as of late. They owned Ava. Rip said as much, hinted that there was paperwork somewhere that said it. She kept pushing and pushing Rip to talk to the board, to figure out a way to give Ava autonomy over her own life, but Rip was becoming increasingly more obsessed with the Darhks and some unknown big bad that he would only hint at.

So today hadn’t gone well, but that didn’t mean that the night had to be shit either. She makes a decision then and spins back around to face her team.

“Okay, so today wasn’t our best work.”

Zari snorts and the rest of the team make defeated murmurs of agreement.

“Right, so today wasn’t our best work, but you know what? Those last three anachronisms weren’t that bad,” she says and they really weren’t. “We just got sloppy on this last one, okay? I think what we could all use is a break. Everyone get cleaned up, eat something, and meet back here in two hours. We’re going dancing,” she crows.

This gets smiles out of Nate and Ray and an eye roll out of Zari. Amaya nods a head in her direction and Mick merely grunts. They all disperse and she makes her way to her room, intent on ringing up Ava while she waits her turn for the sole bathroom on the Waverider.

She just wants to make sure she didn’t screw anything up for Ava. The agent hasn’t said anything to her, but she’s pretty sure work has been less than ideal. Ava has been a model agent as of late, not that she wasn’t before, but she’s damn near perfect these days. So by the books that its painful, like she’s trying so hard to be the good little worker clone that they want her to be. She hates seeing Ava with that perfectly blank face, speaking in that flat robotic tone.

Outside of the Bureau, it was a different story. They talk every day after work. Sometimes over videocall, sometimes in person. Ava talks about the new foods she’s tried, the new places she’s gone to, and the new clothes she’s purchased. No more wearing Bureau issued garments outside of work. She listens to Ava, makes comments, and gives her opinion on things when asked. In return, she shares stores about her childhood, about what it’s like growing up and having a family. Ava listens to these stories with rapt attention, like she’s being told the secret to life.

Ava picks up her call on the third ring. She’s sitting at her desk in the Bureau. Her face has lost that unsettlingly blank expression, but the agent wasn’t happy by any means.

“Miss Lance, can I help you with something?” the agent says brusquely. “Do you require more assistance?

Irritation flares up in her and she nearly forgets the purpose of her call. “Is that what you were doing earlier? I couldn’t tell from all the yelling going on. Thanks for that by the way. Nothing more demoralizing than being reprimanded in front of your crew and a dozen other Time Bureau agents.”

Couldn’t Ava cut her some slack? They were supposed to be friends or whatever.

Ava purses her lips and looks off the screen for a moment before looking at her again. “I don’t like yelling at you.” Ava states.

“Could’ve fooled me,” she mutters, more sullen and hurt than she realized she had been. So maybe today had bothered her more than she let on.

Ava frowns. “I don’t like yelling at you,” the agent says again.

The corners of her mouth twitch up after Ava repeats herself and she feels herself relax. Ava pretty much always says what she means and when she does try to lie it’s never convincing. This isn’t just Ava trying to placate her, this is what she actually felt.

“I can’t give you special treatment Sara.” And then more quietly Ava mumbles, “Things are bad enough as it is.”

Sara squints. “People bothering you, Aves? Do I need to come down there?”

“It’s nothing,” Ava badly lies not even looking her in the eyes. “Look, losing your entire team doesn’t really engender any trust. It will blow over. People have always had difficulty accepting the AVA’s.”

“And I’m sure all the new freedoms you’re getting is definitely helping with that.” Sara arches an eyebrow in challenge.

Ava sighs. “Can we just drop it? I don’t want to talk about it right now.”

She has a feeling that Ava will never want to talk about it. The agent has always been tight-lipped about her dealings with the Time Bureau. She wasn’t sure if Ava was just prohibited from talking about the Bureau in detail or if she truly did not wish to talk about it.

“We can drop it for now, but if I hear that things are getting worse, I swear I’m going to march down there and mess a couple of people up.”

Ava snorts. “I don’t doubt that Miss Lance, but I would advise against such actions.”

“That’s because you’re no fun and speaking of fun, you should come out with us tonight. The Legends and me, I mean. We’re going out for drinks and dancing. We could all use a break.”

Ava seems to consider it and then frowns. “I’ve never danced before and I’ve never had a drink before. I suppose there’s nothing stopping me from doing those things now.”

She has to school her face to hide the shock. She knows that this is something she should have expected, that Ava isn’t what you would call normal, but never having a night out on the town just seems like a damn shame.

She grins at the agent. “Well Aves, tonight it your lucky night. We’re going to paint the town pink.”

“I thought the expression was paint the town red?”

“Whatever. I will text you with the details. Just meet us whenever you get done with work. Bring Gary if you want.”

Ava smiles for a brief moment and then grimaces. “Please choose somewhere in 2019. I’ve yelled at you enough for one day.”

Sara rolls her eyes. “You’re hilarious. Fine, I will stick to somewhere in your time and place, okay?”

 

 

A few hours later finds Sara leaning against the bar in the Verdant nightclub surveying the scene in front of her. The dance floor is packed and the music blasting as different colored strobe lights flash across the dimly lit club. Most of the Legends were off dancing, except for Mick who is hunkered down at a booth surrounded by a couple bottles of beer.

She herself was just getting another drink. She has a good buzz going, but she doesn’t want to be drunk before Ava gets here. Gary had texted 10 minutes ago saying that they were nearly there and she’s kept her eyes trained on the entrance of the club since then.

Tonight, she was thrumming with a mix of exuberant energy and anxiousness. This isn’t a date she has to remind herself, it was two friends hanging out together. She definitely did not dress with the agent in mind: ankle boots, tight black leather pants, and a nearly sheer black tank top that hinted at a lacy plum and black bra underneath.

Yep, she did not dress for the agent, but she hopes that her outfit might be slightly distracting. She turns away from the entrance when she hears the clink of a glass next to her as the bartender serves her a shot. She throws it back like a pro before returning to watching the entrance.

When she finally spots both Ava and Gary walking into the club, she nearly chokes on her own spit. Gary had said that he was going to take care of getting Ava club ready, but she definitely wasn’t expecting him to be so good at it.

The woman looks like sex in heeled boots. She’s wearing some kind of [lilac colored corset top ](http://katrinakenyon.tumblr.com/post/182673687637/indecent-proposals-1x10-jes-macallan-as-josslyn)with black lace detailing beneath a black leather jacket. Her tight dark blue jeans look like they’re painted on and her honey blonde hair is loose and lightly curled.

Ava looks up, scanning the crowd for her. She only has to wait a few seconds before the agent’s eyes locks on hers. She vaguely notices Gary going off to join the Legends on the dance floor.

Ava looks damned good she thinks as the agent saunters over to her. Good enough to eat. Good enough to skip drinks and dancing all together and sneak off into the bathroom and drop to her knees for the woman, but obviously she wouldn’t be doing that. This was Ava’s first night out after all.

Ava smiles at her and she melts. The agent is still sparing with her smiles, but she gets one at least once a day now and she lives for those smiles. She almost certain that she’s the only one that gets to see Ava like that and she is honored.

Before she knows it, Ava is standing in front of her. On closer inspection she can see lips painted a dark red, the smoky makeup around gray blue eyes, and tantalizing cleavage practically spilling out of that corset. She feels so overwhelmed by the hotness that is Ava Sharpe. She knows the woman is beautiful, but this is almost too much. She might actually pass out.

“You look…wow,” she manages to get out because there are no actual words that will do the woman justice.

Ava scans her up and down, taking her time as she does. “You look wow as well,” Ava tells her with humor in her voice.

She grins at her and Ava smiles back. She feels like the luckiest girl in the world. A particularly blinding strobe light passes across them just then and she sees Ava wince at the light.

“This place is bright and loud,” Ava tells her. “I think I need some time to acclimate.”

Sara chuckles. “Acclimate?”

“Acclimate means to become accustomed to a new climate or conditions,” Ava rattles off.

“I know that.” Okay, so maybe she only kind of knew. “I just meant what do you need to do to acclimate?”

“Oh, well I think I just need to observe my surroundings for a little. Get used to all this …stimuli. Could we hang by the bar for a bit?”

“Of course. Let me get you a drink. What do you want?”

Ava’s brow furrows in confusion. “I honestly don’t know. I’ve never had alcohol before.”

“Right,” Sara says drawing out the word. “I’ll get you something sweet and fruity.”

“That sounds good.”

“Alright, just wait here. I gotta get the bartender’s attention.”

She ventures to the other end of the bar and squeezes into a spot between two barstools waiting for the bartender to notice her. She can’t help but glance back over to where Ava is leaning against the bar. The agent is on alert, her expression watchful as she takes it all in.

“What can I get for you?” The bartender asks.

She turns back around and places her drink order. A hand on her shoulder causes her to tense up immediately, but she relaxes again when she finds that its just Zari. The hacker orders a water and they wait together for their drinks, leaning against the bar and looking out at the dance floor. Her eyes are drawn to Ava again naturally. She just can’t stop looking at Ava. Ava is always beautiful, but tonight she is simply stunning, captivating, a true work of art.

Zari bumps her shoulder apparently having followed her gaze. “So, Ava is lookin’ hot tonight,”

She grins. “I know. Don’t get any ideas.”

Zari snorts. “Relax, your girlfriend is safe.”

Sara groans. “We’re just friends.” _Unfortunately._

“Sure, friends. Cause I drool over all my friends like that.”

She finally drags her eyes away from Ava to look at a smirking Zari. “Okay, so I’m no saint.”

Zari actually laughs at that. “You’re good for each other. She makes you happy,” the hacker says more seriously. “And Ava is crushing on you so hard. Have you seen the way she looks at you?”

She shakes her head no.

“Like you’re the only person in the room.”

Sara sighs. “I just don’t want to rush her into anything. Everything is so new to her and she has enough problems to deal with at the Time Bureau.”

Zari puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Yeah, but I bet you’re her favorite problem. You know, I think you should go for it.”

“You’re giving me more credit than I deserve. I’m not that brave,” she says turning back to Ava.

She curses internally when she sees that Ava is no longer alone. She should have known this would happen.

Zari follows her line of sight and smiles in amusement. “You’ve got some competition, Lance.”

She scowls and Zari lets out a huff of laughter at her unhappy expression. There are two guys chatting with Ava. Ava doesn’t seem uncomfortable, but her face is neutral and she can’t seem to really get a read on the woman.

Zari nudges her. “Go save your girl.”

“She doesn’t need saving,” is her automatic reply, but she can’t help but agree with Zari’s statement.

Zari waves a hand dismissively. “Yeah, yeah, she’s a strong independent woman.”

They watch Ava interact with the objectively cute guys for a few minutes, before things take a turn for the worst. One of the guys, the taller one, whispers something in Ava’s ear and places a hand on the agent’s hip eliciting a response from both herself and the agent.

They watch as Ava grabs the man’s wrist, too hard by the looks of his face.

“Okay Captain, now would be a good time for you to step in.” Zari says while giving her a shove in the agent’s direction. “She might not need saving, but the other guys might. I’ll watch your drinks, go.”

She makes her way over to Ava and slides in beside her, putting a possessive arm around the other woman and pressing their sides together.

“Having fun, babe?” She whispers, her lips brushing against Ava’s ear. She smiles when she feels a shiver run through the agent’s body. Ava, effectively distracted, drops the man’s wrist immediately. She gives the men in front of her a look and pulls Ava even closer, staking her claim, the message loud and clear, ‘fuck off, she’s mine.”

She’s a little worried that she may have gone too far. She’ll admit that she’s been more affectionate with Ava lately, using every excuse to touch her, a steadying hand on the small of her back, tucking a flyaway hair behind the agent’s ear, hands on her hips to help her with her fighting form. And of course, there’s the cuddling. It’s happened enough times now that it’s become a thing and lately Ava has been experimenting with being the big spoon. She complains about it, but god she loves it. She feels so safe and warm wrapped up in Ava’s arms.

So, they’re affectionate with each other, just not in public. It turns out that she doesn’t need to be worried, because Ava just looks down at their sides pressed together and then trails her gaze up to peek at the lace of her bra beneath her sheer shirt, up to her lips, and finally her eyes. If those guys didn’t know Ava was into girls, they sure did now.

She smirks at the men standing in front of her and they wisely choose to leave, disappearing into the crowd without another word.

When she looks back at Ava, the woman is just watching her and not making any attempt to move. The way Ava is looking at her is so intense. For a moment everything fades away, all the people, the music, the flashing lights, everything. It really does feel like there is no one else in the room. It’s just the two of them. So maybe Zari was right about the whole crush thing.

She gets their drinks back from Zari. There’s a little umbrella in Ava’s sugary sweet drink and the agent is delighted at the sight of it. She has to tell Ava to slow down, remembering that the bartender was generous with the rum when he made the drink.

They lean against the bar and sip their drinks and she watches Ava watch everyone on the dance floor. The agent’s face is almost thoughtful now.

“So that’s dancing?” Ava asks her.

Sara turns to look at her, tilting her head curiously.

“I’ve seen it on TV, just not in person,” Ava explains.

She throws back the rest of her drink and holds out her hand. “So, let’s dance.”

“Sara, I can’t. I don’t know how to.”

She winks at her. “Well lucky for you, I’m a great teacher.”

They stop at the booth Mick is currently occupying and Ava strips off her leather jacket and tosses it onto the empty bench across from Mick. The lilac corset top Ava’s wearing is strapless, and all she can see are smooth naked shoulders. She didn’t even know shoulders could be this sexy, but here they were. She has the urge to press a kiss on one of those shoulders and nip and kiss her way across it and along the soft skin of the agent’s neck. She has to physically shake herself to get her thoughts away from that.

She leads Ava onto the dance floor instead and the crowd seems to swallow them up. They move further across the floor and stop when they’ve reached a little pocket of space that fits the two of them. Ava looks a little overwhelmed, her eyes darting to all the moving writhing bodies surrounding them. Different colored lights flash around them and the bass of the music thumps through the floor.

She puts her arms around Ava’s waist and pulls her closer. There’s not much space between them now, but they aren’t quite touching yet.

“Hey,” she says and Ava’s darting eyes focus on hers.

“What do we do now?” Ava asks.

“Just move.”

Ava’s brow furrows. “How?”

Sara starts to move her body, swaying her hips to follow the rhythm of the music. Her movements are both sensuous and fluid. It’s been a while since she’s done this. She almost forgot how much she loves dancing. Halfway through the song she tilts her head upwards and runs a careless hand through her hair as she gives herself up to the music.

She dances for Ava, only Ava, giving her an example of what she should do. When the song is over and a new one begins, she puts her hands on Ava’s hips and tries to get the agent to start swaying with her, but the woman doesn’t budge. She’s frozen.

Ava’s eyes are dark with naked want as they look upon her with an almost laser focus. She squeezes Ava’s hips and this seems to bring the agent back to earth. The blush that develops across Ava’s cheeks is visible even in the dark and she can’t help the smirk that crosses her lips.

She leans in closer. “See something you like, Sharpe?”

She doesn’t let Ava answer. Instead she pulls the agent by the hips closer to her, so that they’re touching now and then she takes Ava’s hands and positions them on her hips. She starts to sway her hips again and the moves Ava’s hips to match her own movements.

Ava moves awkwardly with her, looking embarrassed at her own ineptness.

“No one is watching you,” she assures the agent, but Ava doesn’t look convinced. “Close, your eyes then,” she says instead. “Just feel the music and move in time with the beat. Nothing else matters.”

Ava’s eyes flutter closed and her movements become less robotic and more graceful. A definite improvement. They go on like this for a song, before Ava feels brave enough to open her eyes. She steps back from the agent, like she’s teaching a kid to ride a bike and letting go for the first time. Ava face flickers with worry for a second, but she keeps dancing.

Eventually any hints of self-consciousness fall away from Ava and the agent genuinely seems like she’s having fun. Its nice to see Little Miss Time Bureau let loose. It’s still a bit of a strange sight, but one she is currently loving.

She finds herself moving closer to Ava as the night progresses. She had been trying to give the agent room to move, trying not to crowd her on the hot, humid dance floor, but all she wants is to be close to her.

The song changes, the bass low and pulsing. She can feel it reverberating through the floor. The song is the dirty kind, one that begs for grinding and hot wet kisses right there on the dance floor.

She moves closer to Ava and tries and fails at not tracing the bead of sweat making its way along Ava’s neck, across her chest, and disappearing beneath her corset with her eyes. She desperately wants to trace that same path with her tongue.

When she drags her gaze back up to Ava’s face, she finds the agent looking at her with dark lust-blown eyes. She steps closer, reaches out to put her arms around the taller woman’s neck and then moves her body against Ava’s. She can hear Ava gasp lightly in her ear and heat pools low in her stomach at the sound. The agent presses her face against her neck and she can feel lips brush against the skin there, light enough for her to think that the action was by accident.

Ava’s hips push closer against her’s and move in time with the music. Its feels so good. Ava is so warm and soft in her arms, and the way Ava grinds into her is almost unbearable. Little jolts of pleasure every time. With a mind hazy with lust, she presses a thigh between Ava’s, not really thinking about it. They keep dancing.

She presses her thigh a little harder against Ava’s center and she thinks she can hear a moan over the sound of the music. And then Ava is clutching at her back and whispering urgently in her ear, “Sara, Sara!”

She pulls back instantly and looks at Ava. The agent’s face is flushed, and her eyes wide in a mix of wonder and confusion. The poor thing is nearly trembling in her arms. It’s too much for her Ava, too much stimulation in a place that’s new and foreign to her. She can tell that Ava is on the edge and Sara feels bad about pushing her this far and thinking only of herself.

She pulls Ava off the dance floor and gets them both waters while they cool down by the bar.

“You okay,” she asks, still feeling guilty. She wasn’t planning on being this big of a tease tonight.

“Yeah, that was…. I’m good, more than good I think.” Ava’s voice sounds a little dreamy, a little breathy, and it makes her feel marginally better.

She plays with the condensation on her glass not making eye contact. “I’m sorry if that was too much.”

“It was,” Ava says carefully. “But I liked it? I’ve never felt like that before, at least not to that intensely. Is dancing always like that? Have I misunderstood what dancing actually is?” Ava’s voice is genuinely curious.

She can’t stop the low chuckle that makes it past her lips. “No Aves, you have not misunderstood what dancing actually is. Dancing is sometimes like that, not always. Usually you just dance to have fun, but sometimes it’s…a little more purposeful, more sensual.” What they were doing definitely constituted as sensual, it was downright erotic. “We were grinding, dirty dancing.”

“Oh,” Ava says slowly, like she’s trying to process what she had just heard. “Is that how you always dance?” Ava’s voice sounds so causal, but she can hear the thin veneer of jealously behind the agent’s words. It’s almost cute.

“No, not always. Sometime I do dance like that though.” She shrugs. She’s not going to lie to Ava. “I like the way it feels too.”

“Right,” Ava says and the word comes out dripping with displeasure. The agent purses her lips into a straight unhappy line, jealously clearly showing now. It shouldn’t be, but it’s really fucking adorable.

She steps closer to Ava and catches her eyes. “If it makes you feel better, I won’t dance with anyone else like that anymore. Only you.”

Ava nods her head sharply. “Yes, please do that.”

She lets out a laugh and pulls Ava into a hug and kisses her cheek. “You got it babe. I’m all yours.”

She can feel all the tension leave the agent’s body and lets herself relax as well. She hasn’t ruined anything tonight. In fact, she might even be getting somewhere with the Time Agent, but she would need to be more careful not to push Ava into anything she wasn’t ready for. She could work the long game.

Ava yawns in her arms and suddenly looks sleepy now that the adrenaline from dancing is wearing off. She wants to kiss her so badly, but that would go against her plans of taking things slowly and being careful.

“Ready to go home?”

“Yeah,” Ava says sounding more tired by the second.

She texts Gary and lets him know that she’s taking Ava back to the Waverider and then sends a text to Amaya to let her know that she’s leaving. She decides that she’s going to count tonight as a success, despite accidently working Ava up with her dirty dancing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In case you missed the embedded link. I made a photoset of the outfit Ava is wearing at the club.  
> http://katrinakenyon.tumblr.com/post/182673687637/indecent-proposals-1x10-jes-macallan-as-josslyn


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